Wintrust completes acquisition

ROSEMONT - Wintrust Financial Corp. recently completed its acquisition of Community Financial Shares Inc., the parent company of Community Bank-Wheaton/Glen Ellyn.

Community Bank-Wheaton/Glen Ellyn, which has four locations in the two DuPage County communities. will now operate as branches of Wintrust's subsidiary, Wheaton Bank & Trust Company. The acquisition will give Wheaton Bank & Trust six branch locations in the Wheaton and Glen Ellyn markets. Wintrust expects to combine three of the CBWGE branch offices with its existing branch offices during the second half of 2015.

"This transaction allows us to expand and complement our existing market presence in the communities of Wheaton and Glen Ellyn, Illinois," said Edward J. Wehmer, President and CEO of Wintrust. "The combined synergies that our two firms can realize in the local communities will provide CBWGE's customers with top-notch service and an expanded array of products and services."

CBWGE has approximately $343 million in assets, approximately $182 million in loans and approximately $310 million in deposits. Wintrust officials say its approach to community-based customer service is similar to that of the 15 Wintrust community banks in more than 150 locations in the Chicago metropolitan and southern Wisconsin markets.

"We are excited about the conclusion of the transaction and combining resources with Wintrust, a successful organization that is like-minded in its philosophy of offering highly personalized banking services and possesses the financial capabilities to support further expansion." said Donald H. Wilson, president and CEO of CBWGE. "The transaction allows us to continue focusing on serving our customers, while becoming part of a growing and dynamic force in Chicagoland banking."